


The Yucatan Job - Bugs!

by acs



Series: The Yucatan Job [8]
Category: Glee, The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
Genre: Aliens, Gen, Going to War, Space Opera
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-08
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:27:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,636
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26888851
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/acs/pseuds/acs
Summary: Bugs are sighted on the horizon. A secret mission is launched. And so it begins - The War Against the Bugs!
Series: The Yucatan Job [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/54529
Kudos: 5





	1. Bugs, Mr. Rico!

**Author's Note:**

> Originally written for NaNoWriMo 2018. My first attempt at writing space battles.
> 
>  **Chapter Word Count:** 5,445  
>  **Author Notes:** This is just a teaser. This chapter may change in the future. Many OCs.
> 
> **Disclaimer:** This is a derivative (aka transformative) work. All Glee characters belong to or were created by Ryan Murphy and Co. Not sure who actually owns Glee. Fox originally broadcasted it. _The Devil Wears Prada_ was written by Lauren Weisberger and the movie adaptation was from 20th Century Fox. Miranda Priestly and Andrea Sachs are owned by someone in that list.

"What are we looking at?" Rachel asked, stepping into the Fleet command center behind Quinn. On a large display on the other side of the room was a moving star field and the occasional flash of light. 

"The Bugs have just crossed our outer border," Santana said. "This is the view from our closest viewing post." 

"There's nothing there," Rachel said, looking at Brittany for confirmation, "is there?" 

"They aren't showing up on our regular deep space scans," Brittany said, frowning. "We know they're there because we can detect the Blue Clan response to their presence, but we aren't picking them up on their traditional wavelengths." 

"Blue Clan's intel is worth squat," Santana said, grimacing. "The Bugs are adapting to their attacks." 

"Artie? What about the Galactics?" Rachel asked. 

"You have been provided all known data on the 'Bugs'," Artie said. "Blue Clan has been unable to provide updated calibrations for the Bugs." 

"Blue Clan can obviously detect them but they seem unwilling or unable to provide us with the correct calibration data," Santana said. 

"Intentional?" Rachel asked. 

"Those Blue Clan ships are AI driven," Brittany said. "They apparently respond only to Blue Council requests, and are ignoring us." 

"Well, Blue Clan is off my Christmas list," said Rachel. "Aren't we all in this together?" 

"They appear to not believe you are speaking for the Serpent Clan," Artie said. "Blue Clan Council has given full control of their defenses to their ship AIs. The Bugs destroyed their battle fleet in their first encounter and the AIs took over their fleet." 

"Just lovely," Quinn said, a disgusted expression crossing her face. 

"That's just spiffy," Santana said, sarcastically. "AIs are not equipped to make strategic battle decisions. No offense, Artie." 

"None taken," Artie said. "By design, we are not given the ability to quickly decide life or death in combat situations." 

"So, they're ignoring our requests for info," Rachel said. "What does that mean?" 

"We're alone in this," Brittany said, "though we expected that to happen. The other Clans are playing defense and are just glad to push the Bugs out of their territories." 

"What other tricks do you have to see them?" Rachel said. "You must have plans for this?" 

"The model makes allowances for the Bugs behaving differently than in the past," Brittany said. "We don't know anything about the Bugs, other than what was derived through examining the remains of their ships. If they are intelligent beings, they are bound to change." 

"Show them," Santana said. 

The screen changed, briefly going neon pink. After a moment of neon blue, the screen cleared and a large number of dark objects were visible against the background stars. 

"So we can see them?" Rachel said. 

"We can see their effect on subspace gravitational fields," Brittany said. "From there we can extrapolate what they look like." 

"Is this in real time?" Quinn asked. 

"There's an hour delay," Brittany said. "We don't have the processing power to do any better. Which is why we are still trying to get calibration data from Blue. They must have found a way to detect the Bugs that we are missing." 

"Where can we get the processing power to make this realtime?" Quinn asked. "This is going to be useless under actual battle conditions." 

"No one has that kind of processing power," Brittany said. "Unless some research company out in the Confederation has it." 

"None that are close enough to take advantage of," Artie said. "The Confederation will continue to request data from the Clans." 

"I have some of my wiz kids trying to recalibrate our deep space scanners to detect the Bugs in their new ships," Brittany said. "But it's a long shot. We may need someone to get a lot closer to get scanner data." 

"Which is potentially a suicide mission," Santana said. "I'm not sending any of my crews on a potential suicide mission unless there is no choice, and we're still looking at other options." 

"There's always the Miranda option," Quinn said. "Can't she go places no one else can?" 

"She's already providing us with useful intel," Brittany said. "But we can't plug her into our sensor arrays every time there's an incursion. We need a more permanent solution to a technical problem." 

"Okay," Rachel said. "I'm assuming you don't need me to do anything?" 

"No," Brittany said. "Unless you want to war game our different plans for when they reach the first system." 

"No," Rachel said. "I've got other things to do." 

* * *

Quinn waited for Rachel to leave the room before asking the question that had been on her mind for days. 

"What are our real chances of success right now," She asked, stepping closer to the display. 

"The model says we have a 90% probability of survival, and a 40% chance of defeating the Bugs completely," Brittany said. 

"And what does your intuition say?" Quinn asked. "Forget the model, what do you think?" 

"Quinn... I don't know. If we don't have any support from the other Clans, it's going to be very hard," Brittany said. 

"But we didn't expect them to help," Quinn said. 

"No, but they might have some data that would improve our chances," Brittany said. 

"Other options? Besides the ones you've mentioned?" Quinn asked. 

"Miranda is an important resource," Brittany said, "but there are limits to how we can utilize her abilities, and I would rather not depend on her." 

"Deus ex machina?" Quinn said, frowning 

"Yes," Brittany said. "Exactly." 

"What?" Santana said. "What machine?" 

"It means, more or less, that an unexpected miracle happens, some god, or in this case Miranda, solves our problem," Brittany said. "We can't plan our whole campaign with the expectation that at some future time Miranda will pull a rabbit out of her hat and rescue us." 

"Miranda is powerful, in some respects, but she isn't divine or all powerful," Quinn said, nodding in agreement. 

"And she'd be the first to say that she can't snap her fingers and get rid of the Bugs or find us a way to defeat them." 

"Got it," Santana said. "Miranda is a resource, not the ultimate solution to our Bug problem." 

"Correct," Brittany said. 

"Any real gods or goddesses we can tap?" Santana said. "That Fox god floating around somewhere. Put him to work. And there must be others running around, with all of those legends." 

"No," Brittany said. "The Fox god is good at inspiring, like our goddesses, but not much with the direct action. And there's never been any proof of local gods and goddesses. If there are any wandering around they don't involve themselves in the affairs of mortals." 

"It was a thought," Santana said. 

"We can't reject any ideas," Brittany said. "We need all of the options we can get if we want to win." 

"Is that why you've requisitioned a scout ship?" Santana said. "One of those options?" 

"I requisition a lot of things," Brittany said, winking at her. "You'll have to give me more details." 

"A scout ship with one of the new experimental stealth shields," Santana said. "I'm assuming you're planning on sending some of your spies on a long trip?" 

Possibly," Brittany said. "I've found a possible task for Miranda, Andy, Romana, and Ixchel." 

"Something we need to know now?" Santana said. "Or should be worried about?" 

"No," Brittany said. "It's still in the early planning stages. If the research doesn't pan out it won't happen anyway and they'll go do something else with that ship." 

"Okay," Santana said. "Just make sure they bring it back in one piece. Might need a stealth scouting ship myself before this thing is over." 

* * *

"That's an ugly looking critter," Santana said, after Quinn completed testing her newest suit on the range. 

"It's a composite of all of the known information about the Bugs," Quinn said. "Doesn't give us much to go on, they've never engaged the Clans outside their ships." 

"You think that'll be different this time?" Santana asked her. 

"If we take offensive action against them, it's inevitable," Quinn said. "If it's just the Fleet against the Bugs we'll lose." 

"My people are awesome," Santana said. "The Bugs can't beat them." 

"They don't have to beat them," Quinn said. "They just have to wear us out." 

"You aren't planning on boarding any Bug ships blind?" Santana said. 

"The first couple of times," Quinn said. "Unless one of the other Clans decides to take an interest in our survival and gives us the info we've been requesting." 

"Not likely," Santana said. "They've survived the Bugs for another millennia. If we win that'll upset the balance of power among the Clans, and they won't want that." 

"You think they'll actively interfere?" 

"No, but they won't cry if we get squashed by the Bugs," Santana said. "They aren't enemies but they aren't allies." 

"They'll have to recognize us if we win," Quinn said. 

"Someone in the original Serpent Clan must have ticked off the Council of Clans," Santana said. 

"Why?" Quinn asked, frowning. 

"Ask Rachel about the history of inter-Clan relations. The Clans don't always get along but they aren't usually such roadblocks," Santana said. "There must be a reason they aren't giving us any help." 

"So, you think it's intentional?" Quinn said. "That Blue is intentionally interfering?" 

"If I were me, I'd say yes," Santana said. "If the Bugs wipe us out on their way through this sector, then Blue can claim our territory." 

"Won't be much left of it if we get bugged," Quinn said. "Just piles of radioactive sludge." 

"Plenty of room to expand," Santana said. "We have some prime under-developed planets in this sector. And the only ones keeping it from being exploited are our patrols. Plenty of untapped resource to make smaller clans like Blue jealous." 

"As long as they don't interfere in our plans, they can want it all they want. They won't get any of it while we're here," Quinn said. 

"When will you be at full strength?" Santana said. 

"Another cycle," Quinn said, "and I'll have all positions filled." 

"Good, good," Santana said. "The last troop ship comes online next month." 

"Good," Quinn said. 

* * *

"What's the plan?" Andy asked Brittany. "I'm assuming you have a plan if you've asked all four of us here now." 

"I need you to go on a data gathering trip," Brittany said. "There's a big hole in the model." 

"Something that will take all four of us?" Miranda said. 

"You're willing to risk Romana for a spy trip?" Andy asked. 

"It's very low risk," Brittany said. "You go in, talk to some people, and come back. Simple and easy." 

"Details?" Miranda asked. 

"Of course," Brittany said. She pulled up a star map. "I need you to go here." 

"And here is where?" Andy asked. 

"The Prophets of Zircon Nine," Brittany said. 

"They are a myth," Romana said. "A dangerous myth. No one who goes looking for them ever returns." 

"They were real in my world," Ixchel said. "Though they rarely gave useful advice." 

"Prophets work better in hindsight," Andy said, frowning. "They tend to give some mumbly prophecy that has half a dozen possible solutions." 

"What do you wish us to ask them?" Miranda said. 

"I have a list of questions for them," Brittany said. 

"What kinds of questions?" Andy asked. 

"The usual," Brittany said. "And a few to test how accurate they are." 

"That's dangerous," Andy said. "If they think you are mocking them they could react badly. If they aren't myths." 

"How do we find them?" Romana said. "Although I've heard tales about clansmen who traveled to their planet, they never give directions." 

"Rachel found several references to them in old Clan records," Brittany said. "And we've finally unlocked that shuttle. It included the coordinates to several supposedly mythical places in its logs." 

"So, this is the first trip? You want us to track down other myths?" Andy said. 

"It depends on how successful this trip is," Brittany said. "Not all legends have the same value." 

"When do we leave?" Andy said. "We'll need to say goodbye to the girls." 

"In a week," Brittany said. "The ship you'll be using should be ready then." 

"Good," Andy said. 

* * *

Santana looked around the large auditorium. All but the most essential crew were there, and even they were listening in on the public comm channel. Her XO stood next to her. Quinn was standing off to the side with her command team. Brittany was not there in person but was visible in the front screen. 

"Ladies!" Santana said, her voice easily carrying to the back. "If you can chill, we can start." 

Silence slowly filtered through the room as the several hundred crew came to attention. 

"You've all heard the rumors. So let's make it clear. The Bugs have been sighted crossing over into our sector from Blue Clan territory. Given their currently predicted path and speed, they won't reach occupied Clan territory for nine months. We currently have Scout Squadron Delta monitoring the Bugs. If they deviate from their path we'll be quickly informed." 

"We aren't going to wait for them to threaten any of our systems," Santana said. "By the time they reach us, we expect to have a good idea on how to slow them down. The Shadows are currently examining all incoming data and will keep Fleet updated." 

"We don't expect this to be easy. The Bugs are a notoriously difficult foe to engage, as history shows us. In the past they've been like a tidal wave, rolling over all in their path. That ends here. We will beat the Bugs. The Serpent Clan is the end of the road for them." 

The room erupted in cheers and shouts. 

"Lady Shadow is here to brief us on what we know about this incursion," Santana said. "And then back to business." 

"Ladies," Brittany said. "We're still collating the information coming in from our scouts but this is what we know - The Bugs are moving at their traditional speed. They are employing a new form of shielding that is blocking our regular scanners. The Bug fleet appears to consist of six fortress class ships; six cruiser class ships, and ten colony class ships. We have not observed any troop carriers or auxiliary vehicles. We have not engaged them, but have observed several Blue Clan encounters with the Bugs. Blue Clan was able to redirect the Bugs away from occupied systems, at predictably heavy losses. The Bugs are behaving in a purely defensive manner. If they are attacked they fight back but otherwise they ignore any other ships." 

"Their actions when approaching a planetary system, on the other hand, have proven to be very destructive. Although Blue Clan kept them from passing through their major population centers, all systems in their path were stripped of all metals and organic material." 

"In the last two encounters with the Bugs, which occurred several thousand cycles ago, there were no troop engagements between the Bugs and other forces. We hope to change this. Lady Hands and her teams will be testing Bug defenses and will be trying to draw them out. If we can weaken them, in any way, before Fleet engages them, we will have a higher chance of not just surviving this encounter but of destroying them completely. It's time the Clans removed the Bugs permanently." 

The room erupted once more in shouts and cheers. 

* * *

"Enthusiastic crew," Quinn said. "I've kept my teams informed of the seriousness of the upcoming encounters with the Bugs, and I assume you've done the same." 

"Of course," Santana said. "All of my crews know the score. But they have faith in the Council. If the Council says it is possible to defeat the Bugs, they believe it." 

"That optimism may matter more than some of our plans," Brittany said in their ears. "Given equally outfitted groups the group with the more positive attitude will win when it comes to life or death." 

"We don't know much about the Bugs," Quinn said. "Even our information about their abilities is third hand. None of the clans have engaged them outside of their ships during this incursion. They could be automated ships." 

"That would be embarrassing, if the Clans have been losing to ships on autopilot," Santana said. 

"There are no signs that they are being driven by AI," Brittany said. "Or at least not AI as we know it. But you are correct. They could be empty. Or decoys. We don't know." 

"Which is why my teams will engage them head on," Quinn said. "We have several ambushes planned before they reach any systems." 

"We could catch them in stasis," Santana said. "Or we could end up waking them up." 

"We aren't going to be that lucky," Brittany said. "They may be predictable, so far, but if we poke them too much they may learn to react." 

"There is too much unknown about the Bugs," Quinn said. "Each encounter will teach us something." 

* * *

"When is your first Bug test?" Rachel asked, staring out her window. 

"Next week," Quinn said. "The Bugs haven't deviated from their path, so we'll hit them in an open area between systems with just enough force to get a reaction from them." 

"Any idea why the other clans didn't try this?" Rachel asked. "It seems obvious that a small group could sneak in past their barriers." 

"There hasn't been a lot of innovative thinking," Quinn said. "Just standard attacks. Blue Clan treated them like pirates. But pirates need a different touch than a fleet of mysterious aliens." 

"Blue Clan was really unprepared for the Bugs," Rachel said. 

"Why do you say that?" Quinn asked. 

"It's obvious," Rachel said. "If they'd been prepared they wouldn't have lost their main battle fleet. Look at how Santana is guiding the Fleet. She won't risk her entire fleet and our sector just to meet the Bugs in flashy battle like they did. If Blue had studied how the other Clans encountered the Bugs they would have known it was a bad idea. Even I can see that and I'm not a tactician." 

"Well, we learn from history," Quinn said. "I'm not sure Blue Clan knows the history of the Bugs. And what was tried against them." 

"It would be silly of them to have not researched the Bugs. We've been preparing for them for a long time," Rachel said. "What have the other Clans been doing? Why have they been silent?" 

"Santana thinks it's a conspiracy. She things that's the only way to explain their incompetence. Or they've just gotten so used to their quiet sector that they didn't prepare. The Blues haven't had to fight pirates or deal with smugglers in years." Quinn shook her head. "I think our chance will come. We've known they were coming for years." 

"I can't speak for the Blue Clan Council," Rachel said. "But there must have been something really wrong for their Council to be almost wiped out." 

"The Bugs shouldn't be approached as if they were some natural phenomena or like pirates. But that's what the Clans have been doing. Blue has taken the most serious damage but the others didn't come off well either. For all of them, this is about politics. They looked for some way to come out on top and leave the other clans in the mud." 

"Santana and Brittany won't play that game," Quinn said. "We aren't going to defeat the Bugs by will power alone. Or by trying to outmaneuver the Bugs using semantic tricks. The Bugs can't be reasoned with." 

"As long as you don't forget that," Rachel said. "We won't be trying to convince them to go in a different direction because we ask politely." 

"What are you waiting for, Q," Santana's voice came over the comm. "Chatting away with your squeeze, when you could be doing something productive." 

"We're still five days away from our first mission against the Bugs," Quinn said. "I know my business. We'll be ready for this experiment. Expecting my teams to maintain that level of awareness for a week will result in tired troopers, the opposite of ready and alert in fact." 

* * *

They'd been probing the Bug fleet for the last week. Small one person scouts keeping pace with the larger, lumbering Bug ships just out past known sensor range. Smaller AI driven probes in closer. 

"How close are we to getting real-time sensor data from them?" Santana asked, watching the data streams on the bridge monitors. 

"It's getting better," her XO said. "The Shadows are giving us near-real time data, within ten minutes." 

"Still not good enough," Santana said. "We can't fight a close in battle with a time lag like that. We could lose an entire attack group because we didn't see something happening and not know it until it was too late." 

"We're working on it," the sensor team lead said. "The Shadows believe they can crack the shields hiding the Bugs from our sensors. They just need a little more time." 

"We're ready when you are," Quinn said over the command comm. "You've seen our plans." 

"Yes, and it's too risky with our sensor issues," Santana said. "The mission is on hold until that is fixed." 

"We can't put it on hold for much longer," Quinn said. "We need to know how they will react to small scale attacks." 

"You're just itching to test your new armor," Santana said. 

"It's the best our armorers can make," Quinn said. "It can withstand anything we've run into so far." 

"We don't know what kinds of up close weapons the Bugs have," Santana said. 

"Which is why we need to do this now," Quinn say, almost growling. "A month from now could be too late. Once they reach one of the planetary systems we won't have time to figure out a defense." 

"Yada, yada," Santana said. "I know this. I've got similar problems. None of the data we've managed to pry loose from the other Clans gives us info on how to adjust our shields against their weapons. Did you see what their main battle beam did to that Blue Clan cruiser? Cut through it like it wasn't even there." 

"Our tech is better than Blue's," Quinn said. "Our techs are smarter and just plain better." 

"We hope our tech is better," Santana said. "Sure, we started out with the most advanced tech the Confederation could give us but the Clans have always been a step ahead of the Galactics in ship and weapons tech." 

"The Clans have nothing like our hard suits, and their ship tech has stagnated," Quinn said. "You could design a better attack craft in your sleep than what we've seen Blue using." 

"The Bugs haven't engaged any of the Clans at the troop level this time around," Santana said. "When was the last time they did that? Showed up with an army?" 

"At the Battle of Hara's Reach," Quinn said. 

"During their first known incursion, over ten thousand cycles ago," Santana said. "And they won." 

"Which doesn't explain why they haven't used ground troops since," Quinn said. "I need to see what they have. Brit's gang hasn't been able to confirm they even have troops." 

"They could have robots," Santana said. "Maybe they don't need ground troops?" 

"Well, if they don't have them now they will need them before we're through with them." 

"Darwin wasn't a general," Santana said. "Evolution is too slow for the battle field." 

"We've been steadily improving our hard suits," Quinn said. "What we had five years ago was amateur hour compared to our current suits." 

"Which you'll be able to take out for a test drive against the Bugs as soon as we can provide fit support," Santana said. "We don't do suicide missions in this Clan." 

"It's not suicide, it's a calculated risk," Quinn said. 

"Don't let Brit or Rachel hear you say that," Santana said. 

"Lady Air?" Santana's Comm officer said, interrupting them. 

"Yes?" 

"We have an incoming transmission," she said. "It's using a communication encoding we haven't used in centuries." 

"Do we know who it's from?" Santana asked. 

"No, ma'am," she said. "It's missing the complete id tags." 

"Put it on screen," Santana said. 

The main screen on the bridge switched to a static filled view of the bridge of an old Clan cruiser. 

"This is Captain Hoor of the Chandar Planetary Defense fleet," a wavery figure said. 

"Comms, clean that picture up," Santana said, in a low voice. "I am the Lady Air of the Serpent Clan Fleet," Santana said. "How can we help you?" 

"We've been unable to contact Chandarian Space control," Hoor said. "And Blue Clan Defense is not responding on the usual sector channels for our help request. Serpent Clan control is listed as emergency backup." 

"Chandar is outside of our purview," Santana said. "Just a moment." Santana switched over to her command com. 

"XO, what can you tell me about Chandar? Specifically their Planetary Defense fleet," she asked. 

"Small system, mostly asteroid mining," her XO said. 

"How close to the path of the Bugs through Blue sector?" Santana asked. 

"Half a parsec, Lady Air," her XO said. "They should not have been in danger from the current incursion." 

"So, other possibilities?" Santana said. "Pirates? An invasion?" 

"Obviously, the Bugs have more than one fleet," Brittany said, joining in on the command channel. "Unexpected but not a complete surprise." 

"Do we have a plan for this?" Quinn asked. "We're still on track to reach the known Bug fleet in several days. If we're going to Chandar first we'll need to make changes." 

"Uploading alternate plan now," Brittany said. "Contact me when you've reviewed it." 

Santana switched back to Hoor. "We'll make a team available to investigate," she said. "Send us coordinates for your location. We'll send a ship." 

"Yes, Lady Air," Hoor said, looking relieved. "We'll be expecting them." 

* * *

"What do you think?" Santana said, after reviewing Brittany's alternate plan. "Can this be adapted?" 

"Yes," Brittany said. "We'll need a ship to pick up Q and Gold team, and Black Team will need additional personnel to handle the original recon." 

"Q's going to want to do both," Santana said. "She'll need a Shadow crew. Who can you spare?" 

"The light cruiser Hotep just came out of dry dock and re-int testing," Brittany said. "They haven't been assigned anything critical and can be repurposed." 

"We might need something larger if this is really Bug related," Santana said. 

"We don't have time," Brittany said. "If there's another Bug Fleet out there we need to find it. But we also need more data on the Bugs." 

"How'd we get tagged in as Blue Clan backup anyway?" Santana asked. 

"Only for this side of their sector," Brittany said. "Chandar is the only populated system we share with them." 

"Good to know," Santana said. 

"We have a few too many unknowns for this plan to work as is," Quinn said over the comm. "I'll need faster transportation, preferably armed, and the usual spares." 

"A cruiser, the Hotep, is on its way to your location," Santana said. 

"Good, we've worked with them before," Quinn said. "Do we have in-depth data on Chandar? Tactical info?" 

"It's being compiled now," Brittany said. "Blue is still being difficult but we should have enough for you to work with before the cruiser gets to you." 

* * *

"Lady Hands, welcome aboard," Captain Jolie said, she and her deck crew saluting Quinn and her Gold Team XO, and their Shadow liaison. 

"Glad to be working with you again, Captain Jolie," Quinn said. "You've had a chance to look at the mission plan?" 

"Yes, Lady Hands," Jolie said. "It makes for interesting reading. We're to assess the Chandar system for any Bug incursion and to discover why there is no communication from control systems in the area." 

"Correct," Quinn said. "Although there is no reason to believe that the Bugs have been involved in whatever is going on with Chandar, you are to assume that they may be nearby." 

"We'll be ready to go as soon as all of your gear is stowed," Jolie said. "Your team has the same quarters as our last trip. Master Chief Han is our new troop equipment engineer." 

Quinn turned to her XO, "Pin, please make sure our suits are stowed and update the Master Chief with the suit changes." 

"Yes, ma'am," Pin said, nodding at the Master Chief. They left the deck together. 

"Ma'am, all equipment and personnel are aboard," Jolie's XO said. "Ready for movement." 

"Nav, set course for Chandar," Jolie said. 

"Aye, ma'am," the ship's navigator said. "Ready for transition." 

"All hands, prepare for transition," Jolie said over the ship's comm. "On my mark, go!" 

With a barely perceptible hum, the Hotep seemed to leap forward. To an outside observer it would have looked like a flash as the ship seemed to disappear. 

"You have the new triphase engines," Quinn said to the captain. 

"Yes," Jolie said. "Just got back from integration. We can move faster than any known ship outside of Fleet. We should be meeting our contact outside Chandar in three days." 

"Excellent," Quinn said. "That'll give us time to go over the mission parameters. I've made a few changes, based on additional Bug data. You've got the Mark V weapons system, yes?" 

"Only the best for your personal chariot, Lady Hands," Jolie said. "XO, we'll be in my office." 

"Yes, ma'am," her XO said. 

* * *

"What do you really think of the mission?" Jolie asked the sitting Lady Hands after handing her a drink in her office. 

"The Council is concerned with the lack of cooperation from Blue Clan," Quinn said. "You read the reports on their encounters with the Bugs. The Blues seem to be in chaos. They weren't prepared for the Bugs and took more damage than they should have. The Galactics haven't been able to put us in touch with the Blue Clan Council. It appears that Blue fleet is under control of their AIs." 

"And since the Council of Councils doesn't completely recognize us, they aren't going to help. So, we could be heading into a serious cluster situation?" Jolie said. 

"Yes," Quinn said. "The Galactics will back us up but they don't have anything capable of touching a Bug fleet. We're going to have to step carefully once we reach Blue sector. We have authority to help Chandar but we an't interfere with Blue internal politics." 

"And they really love their politics," Jolie said, "if I remember my history." 

"Lady Shadow believes that someone in Blue took the disaster with their main fleet as an opportunity to seize control." 

"So, we only have Gold and Green teams for ground support, and the Hotep," Jolie said. 

"Any more would have been too provocative," Quinn say. "And if it is the Bugs, they're likely to have moved on anyway, they usually strip a system in days and the Chandar ship lost contact over a week ago while investigating reports of ship movement in the next system over." 

"So, they got lucky and missed whatever happened to their system," Jolie said. "Well, here's to the gods making it simple pirates." 

"Pirates," Quinn agreed, raising her glass. "Haven't had a good pirate fight all year." 

"That's because they know better than to let one of your troops get close enough to engage," Jolie said. "If they can't get away from Fleet they self destruct." 

"Crazy," Quinn said. "It's not like we'd kill them if they surrendered." 

"They're pirates," Jolie said. "Only crazy people become pirates in Clan territories." 

* * *

"So, you have the new suits," the Master Chief said, looking at the troop manifest with Pin. "How's their durability?" 

"A lot better than the Mark C9s we used to use," Pin said. "With a few extra features that haven't been released to the rest of the fleet yet." 

"Lady Hands does like to use the best," the Master Chief said. "Her hands are all over the Fleet tech manuals for this model." 

"She won't let our teams wear anything she hasn't approved herself," Pin said. 

"And tested," the Master Chief said with approval. "What do you need us to do to prep them?" 

"Just standard pre-fight unpacking," Pin said. "We were already en route to the Bug Fleet for recon. So everything is already prepared for action." 

"Which means overkill if Chandar isn't a Bug problem," the Master Chief said. 

"There's no such thing as overkill in a hard suit," Pin said, grinning. "Come on, let me introduce you and your techs to the teams. We've had a few troop changes since you were with us last." 


	2. Encounter at Chandar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dealing with the attack on Chandar, and searching for the culprits.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Chapter Word Count:** 5,205  
>  **Notes:** Another installment before NaNoWriMo starts on November 1st.

"Approaching the Chandar system border," Jolie's XO stated. "No sign of any other ships." 

"Scan the system," Jolie said. "Find out what we're dealing with, ladies." 

"No comm traffic," her Comm officer reported. "Dead silence." 

"Where's that local?" Jolie muttered. "We couldn't have gotten here first." 

"Distress beacon at one twenty," Comms said. "It's the same type of signal Fleet reported for the Chandar Planetary Defense ship. Something is interfering with our scanners in that area." 

"Send out a scout," Jolie said. "And keep looking. There's something wrong. Chandar isn't heavily populated but it should have some comm traffic." 

"Scout launched," her XO reported. "Five until contact." 

"Kali, what do you see," her XO asked the scout pilot. 

"It's a debris field," Kali reported. "Looks like something large lost a fight with a shark." 

"Any identifying marks? Is that our Chandar contact?" Jolie asked, giving Quinn a concerned look. 

"Looks like a station," Kali said. "At least the parts large enough to identify." 

"What's blocking our ship sensors?" the XO said. 

"There's an odd energy signature here," Kali said. "Relaying data stream." 

"Not something I'm familiar with," Comms said. "Nothing in our databanks matches that." 

"Gotta love a mystery," Jolie said. A warning bell sounded. 

"Ship incoming," the Tach officer said. "Matches signature of Chandar defense force ship that contacted Fleet." 

"Open a channel," Jolie said. "Kali, continue scanning the debris. We need to know what that is." 

"So, we got here before them," Quinn said. "How?" 

"Status of Chandar ship," Jolie asked her Tach officer. 

"It's an antique," the Tach officer said. "Old Galactic tech. Large and slow." 

"Armaments?" Jolie said. 

"Basic self defense," Tech said. "Good thing it wasn't here, it wouldn't have survived whatever destroyed that station." 

"Captain Hoor is requesting permission to board," the ship's XO said. "Ship security is waiting for your approval." 

"Lady Q?" Jolie said. "Requesting assistance." 

"Green will provide security backup," Quinn said, nodding. She sent a command to the Green Team commander. 

* * *

"Ladies, we're just backup," Xano, Green Team leader told her XO and squad leader, as they joined Ships Security at the docking station. "The captain wants us to impress the natives." 

"We can do that boss," Lil said, grinning. "Impressing the natives is a specialty." 

"Try not to scare them," Security One said. "They probably haven't seen tech as advanced as ours." 

The airlock status light went green. After a quick detox cycle, it started to open. Standing in the lock were three small female Juuns. 

"Welcome to the Hotep," Security One said. "The captain is expecting you." 

"We are pleased to be here," the older Juun said, staring wide eyed at them. 

* * *

"Juun?" Quinn said, frowning at the data being relayed from ship security. "Did we know this was a Juun system? I didn't see anything about that in the data the Galactics sent us." 

"We knew it was a mining conglomerate," Jolie said. "Aren't they usually Juun?" 

"That explains the tech and signals Kali is getting," her XO said. "The Juun are not rich. Their ships are kept running for a long time." 

"So, any tech is going to be really old," Quinn nodded, updating her teams. 

Security One and Two took up positions outside of the conference chamber. Green Team Lead and XO provided security in the chamber itself. 

"I am Captain Jolie, of the Serpent Clan Fleet, and this is Lady Hands, of the Clan Council," Jolie said, when Captain Hoor had joined them in the captain's conference chamber. "Welcome to the Hotep." 

"You have a beautiful ship," Captain Hoor said, "It is not a model I am familiar with." 

"Serpent Clan light cruiser," Jolie said. "We have a few of them in our fleet." 

"You asked for our assistance," Quinn said, getting right to the point. 

"There does not appear to be any life in this system. We've detected a debris field but nothing else," Jolie said. "No other ships, no tech." 

"All communication with our people in the system has stopped," Hoor said, dismayed. "We were escorting a caravan to the metal markets on Targ Seven, and lost communication." 

"Where's the caravan now?" Jolie asked. 

"They remained at Targ Seven," Hoor said. "We contacted your fleet and headed home as quickly as possible." 

"We're been scanning the system, but there's nothing here," Jolie said. "What metal were you mining?" 

"This was a very profitable gallium system," Hoor said. "We've been mining it for several hundred galactic cycles. The planets are not habitable. All of our people live in stations. You should have seen signs of them." 

"Show us where," Jolie said, pulling up a 3D map of the system. "The debris field is here," she said pointing towards a green light. "So far, all we've found is crushed tech. And a radiation field our long range scanners can't penetrate. Did you have any special shielding?" 

"No," Hoor said, dismayed. "There should be a station here," she pointed at the map, "and here," she pointed at another spot," and another on the planetary surface here." 

"We'll send scouts out to look but to be honest, I don't expect to find anything. There are classic signs of a Kraal fleet stripping the system," Jolie said. 

"The Kraal were nowhere near here, or so Blue Clan claimed," Hoor said. "What happened to our people? There were a thousand breeding pairs, and miners in the system. Where are they?" 

"We can't answer that at this time," Jolie said. "Where is the rest of your defense fleet?" 

"It was really just us, with a dozen small shuttles and close support craft," Hoor said. "Pirates aren't interesting in gallium." 

"We can spare several days," Quinn said. "If this was caused by the Kraal, we need to track them down." 

"Even this wonderful ship is not much protection from a Kraal scavenging fleet," Hoor said, shaking her head. "We cannot stay here." 

"Where will you go?" Jolie asked. 

"We were a small operation," Hoor said. "Our parent conglomerate is in Wind Clan territory. We must find out what happened here. The families of the missing will insist on an accounting. The Conglomerate will determine if we stay." 

"We'll stay as long as we can and help your search," Quinn said. "If the Kraal have been through here, we'll need to make sure it is clear of any traps." 

"We thank you," Captain Hoor said. 

* * *

"That isn't good," Quinn said. "Several thousand Juun gone without a trace." 

"The Bugs usually don't leave anything in systems they've scavenged," Jolie said. "If they've been through here, it's surprising that we've found the remains of one of the Juun stations." 

"We'll need an in-depth analysis of that debris field," Quinn said. "If that Juun station was able to resist the Bugs in any way, that is something we really need to know." 

"There doesn't seem to be anything special about it," Jolie said, looking at Kali's report. "Other than whatever is blocking our sensors." 

"Gallium?" Quinn said. "It's not a metal that is found in our sector in any large quantities." 

"It's used in some older sensor arrays," Hancock, their Shadow liaison, said. "We don't use it in any of our Clan tech, though Tiger Clan often used it. And it is not known to cause scanner problems," 

"We'll need a sample," Jolie said to her XO, "of the ore and refined metal. Have the scouts reached the other station locations?" 

"Scout Three has," her XO said. "Nothing. The area is clear. Scout Two is searching the planet surface. That will take a little longer. It looks like several volcanoes covered the surface in lava." 

"I'm assuming no survivors at this point," Jolie said. "Unless they went deep underground." 

"Scout Two is reporting a stasis field?" her XO said. "Old style. Requires special equipment to open." 

"Do we have anything that will open that kind of stasis pod?" Jolie asked. 

"No, but the Juun do," her XO said. "They use them while traveling between systems." 

* * *

"There are clear signs of the Kraal in this system," Quinn said, recording a message to send back to Brittany. "It's been stripped bare and there are traces of the energy tools used by the Bugs. We've found a large stasis pod where one of the Juun stations used to be and will be opening it shortly. We haven't found any indication of the direction taken by the Bugs after they stripped the system." She continued for several more minutes, giving instructions to her teams and laying out their plans. 

"Okay," Quinn said. "Let's go crack open that stasis pod." 

* * *

"That's large," Quinn said. "Not quite as large as some we've seen. What do you expect to be in it?" she asked Captain Hoor, who had returned to her ship. 

"All of our stations have the ability to encapsulate in an emergency," Hoor said. "This is big enough to contain the living quarters of the station that was at these coordinates." 

"Do we need to move it to a safe location first?" Jolie asked. 

"It will contain environmental systems to survive if stasis is removed," Hoor said. "De-encapsulating now." 

There was a glow that spread across the area, gradually getting brighter. After several minutes, the glow disappeared, revealing a cumbersome looking structure floating in space. 

"Looks like it was damaged in a battle," Jolie said. "Tach, scan it. Get me the status." 

"There are a thousand beings in the object," Tach said. "It looks like it's leaking. They only have several minutes of air at the rate it's venting." 

"Captain, we don't have room for that many, even in an emergency like this. Can you take them in?" Jolie said. 

"No, but it's designed to dock with our ships," Hoor said. "But that takes time, that we don't have. We need to stop the leaks first." 

"I think we can take care of that," Jolie said. "We can place a portable shield around it and contain the leaks." She turned to her XO. "Do it!" 

"Yes, ma'am," she said. "Engaging lifeboat shields now." 

"That'll contain any leaks while you fix them," Jolie said. "The shield will let your ship through so that you can dock." 

"Thank you, Captain," Hoor said. She then turned and started directing her crew. 

* * *

"What can you tell us about what happened to Chandar," Quinn asked the next day after the survivors in the stasis pod had been interviewed. 

"They didn't see anything," Hoor said. "Things were normal and suddenly something attacked their station and it encapsulated." 

"I was afraid of that. The energy weapon residue appears to be Kraal in nature, but I'd like more proof than that," Quinn said. "There's no sign of where they went after this. Unless they headed back into the sector, it's just empty space between here and the border." 

"Whatever it was destroyed all of our system sensors," Hoor said. "I'm sorry we cannot help you any further." 

"What's your plan?" Jolie asked. 

"A Conglomerate transport ship shall come for the survivors," Hoor said. "It should be here tomorrow. All of the ore in the system is gone, so there's no reason to stay here. We thank you for your help. If you find out more, we would appreciate being informed." 

"Of course," Jolie said. "We'll stay while you wait for the transport." 

* * *

"You have two days," Jolie told her crew. "Two days to get as much data on this system as possible. We need to know where the Bugs went from here but we can't stick around once the Juun leave." 

"I think we've found something," Hancock said. "Assuming that there was something special about this system that attracted the Bugs, we've modified sensors to use gallium as a sensor component. And this is what we've found." In the center of the room, a 3D map of the Chandar system appeared. And then faintly glowing white lines, looking like roads, appeared. 

"What am I looking at?" Jolie asked. 

"These are the space lanes used by the Juun," Hancock said. "The gallium allows us to see their trails." 

"Interesting," Jolie said. "It's well known that ships energy leaves faint traces, but it usually takes large sensors to detect it. What else?" 

"Tweaking it just a little and we see something else," Hancock said. She adjusted something and faint red lines appeared on the system map. In locations where there'd been a Juun station, large red pulsing lights appeared. "We believe these are from the Bugs." 

"So we can track them?" Quinn asked. "Is this in real time? How much processor power does it take?" 

"It depends on the quantity and quality of gallium," Hancock said. "This much," she held up a small sphere, "is 95% pure. Using spare cycles from the Hotep, we're able to process the data at near real-time speeds. A ship like Flag, with its redundant data banks could show this in real time." 

"So we need a lot of almost pure gallium?" Quinn said, "and then we can see the Bugs?" 

"Possibly," Hancock said. "So far all we've detected are their trails. Find us some real Bug ships and we'll test it." 

"Where do we get the gallium?" Jolie asked. "Where did you get that?" 

"The Juun," Hancock said. "They had a few small refined samples." 

"We'll need more," Quinn said. "I don't think we have anyone familiar with mining gallium." 

"Captain Hoor said there are several systems in our sector with gallium deposits," Hancock said. 

"And, if Chandar is any indication, the Bugs will head straight for them. So, first we need to deal with the Bugs, and then find some miners," Quinn said. 

"The Juun will probably be willing to do the mining," Hancock said. "But Captain Hoor said it took several decades to turn Chandar into a productive mine." 

"So, we only have this?" Jolie said. "Is it enough?" 

"We have enough for several cruisers like the Hotep," Hancock said. "But it won't last. It's consumed by the process. That sample is enough for the Hotep to run its scanners for six months." 

"So, we need a supply of gallium, and a more efficient way to use it." Quinn frowned. "And we'll need a more efficient mining method than the Juun use. And someone will have to negotiate with them." 

"Will the Council be able to meet fast enough?" Jolie asked. 

"I'll send a message as soon as we're done here," Quinn said. 

"Lady Hands?" 

"Yes, Hancock?" Quinn said. 

"It looks like we have a trail to follow," she said, expanding the 3D map. "Their path will intersect with the Bug fleet in approximately ten days from when they left here." 

"Which we currently don't know," Quinn said. "Can you derive any time data from that?" 

"Nothing useful," Hancock said. "Even with the gallium the Bug fleet is still distorting the space around it. 

"So, follow the new trail?" Jolie said, looking at Quinn for confirmation. She turned to her XO. "We'll leave a scout here with the Juun. As soon as they are joined with their conglomerate, the scout can join us." 

"Yes, ma'am," the XO said. 

"We need to follow that trail before it disappears," Quinn said. "Is there anything here in this system that you need to look at before we leave?" 

"No," Jolie said. "We can look at all of the data they collect while waiting for us to return." 

"Good," Quinn said. "Let me now when you are ready to leave." 

"This may not take us to the main Bug fleet," Jolie said. 

"I expect that," Quinn said. "It would be too easy to expect signs pointing right at them. But if this does head straight to the Bug fleet, it could get messy. I don't need to remind you to take the usual precautions." 

"No, Lady Q," Jolie said. 

* * *

"Red Alert" blared throughout the cruiser, the ship's lights changing to amber. 

Quinn stopped reviewing her updated plans for the Bug recon. "What's going on?" she asked Jolie over the ship's command comm. 

"The Bug trail ends in the next system," Jolie said. 

"Which system is it?" Quinn asked. "I thought Chandar was the only one in this area." 

"There are several uninhabited systems," Jolie said. "Mostly just burned out husks drifting towards the galactic edge." 

"What's your plan?" Quinn asked. 

"We'll swing around and come at it from above the planetary plane," Jolie said. "We have scouts out mapping the entire system. With the gallium sensors we might be able to detect their ships if they are still here." 

"Good," Quinn said. "Green and Gold teams can be ready to act as boarding parties if we encounter any Bug ships." 

"You have thirty minutes before we'll be in position," Jolie said. 

"Excellent," Quinn said. 

* * *

Quinn joined Jolie on the bridge. "What have you found?" 

Jolie pointed at a dark section of the tactical map. "There's something here," she said. "The Bug trails end there." 

"How large is that?" Quinn asked. 

"The size of Terra's moon," Jolie said, after consulting the display. 

"So, big enough to hide several Bug ships." Quinn said. "That's more than we're rated for." 

"If it's empty, we can handle it with no problem," Jolie said. "We haven't been able to penetrate it yet." 

"No good with the gallium adjustment?" Quinn asked. 

"No," Jolie said. "It's the same problem we were having with the Bug fleet in our sector. We know it's there. We can detect the trail going into it, but can't penetrate it." 

"Well, at least we have something so we can follow them," Quinn said. "We'll need to get closer." 

"Probes?" Jolie asked. "They're outfitted with the new sensors." 

"Or troopers," Quinn said, grimacing. "A Shadow Recon squad would be useful about now." 

"There's one with your recon team with the Bug fleet," Jolie said. "They're the closest. The next closest is half a sector away." 

"Let's go with the probes first," Quinn said. Jolie nodded and waved at the Tach officer to proceed with the probes. 

Even at half engine speed, the three tiny probes moved at an astounding speed. In ten minutes they'd reached the anomalous area, and begun to circle it. A constant stream of data was sent back to the cruiser. The console 3D map updated itself periodically. 

"Nothing so far," Yola, the Tach officer on duty, said. "We aren't getting a solid look at it. Even the gallium sensors are bouncing right off of it." 

"Try to push one through it," Hancock, Quinn's Shadow liaison, said. "Those probes can withstand almost anything, except being dunked in a sun." 

"And in it goes," Jolie murmured. There was a burst of radio activity and all connections to the probe vanished in a flash of light. "Did you get that?" she asked. "Did anyone catch that flash?" There was dead silence on the bridge. 

"Right there at the end," Yola said, pointing at her screen. "Look at that. It's a compressed burst of data. Right before the flash." 

"From our probe?" Jolie asked. "Why would it be sending anything?" 

"Not to us," Yola said. "Something inside the dead area sent out a burst of data when the probe entered it." 

"Was it trying to find out what the probe was?" Quinn asked. "Did we capture the data?" 

"Yes," Yola said. "It's in here somewhere, otherwise the sensors wouldn't have known what it was." 

"Do ship sensors swallow everything sent at them like that?" Quinn asked, curious. 

"You can't protect yourself against something if you don't see it coming," Jolie said. "Hotep is a hungry ship. Even before the gallium was added, the sensors were the strongest in the fleet." 

"Can we see what was in that data burst?" Quinn asked. 

"It's in quarantine," Yola said, typing away at her console. "It's not compatible with our systems, or it would have given Hotep a hangover, from the look of it." 

"So the Bugs behind the shield attacked our probe and missed?" Jolie said. 

"Well, the probe is very hardened, so it probably bounced off," Yola said. "There's not a lot of probe for anything to attack." 

"So, where's the probe?" Quinn asked. 

"That flash was its self destruct," Yola said. "It must have detected the data burst and interpreted it as an attack." 

"An attack that caused a self-destruct?" Quinn said. 

"Is every probe we send in going to react like that?" Jolie asked, frowning. 

"Possibly," Hancock said, looking over Yola's shoulder. "They're supposed to do that if they determine they've been compromised. Or captured." 

"Well, analyze that data burst," Jolie said. "We need to know what is in it." 

"And why it triggered the self destruct," Quinn said. "I don't want to risk any suits against something that can do that." 

"It's not moving," Jolie said. "We can observe it for now." 

* * *

"So, what is it?" Quinn asked, several hours later. 

"It basically says 'Hello, who are you? You don't have permission to be here.'," Hancock said. 'But it's in an odd quad data format. It resembles some old Bug data transmissions, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to decrypt it." 

"And why did that cause the probe to self-destruct?" Jolie asked. 

"It wasn't the message itself," Yola said. "After that was transmitted there's a brief millisecond pause and the probe was attacked. That is what caused the self-destruct." 

"So, the probe didn't respond to the 'Hello' and whatever was there attacked it?" Quinn asked. 

"Looks like it," Yola said. 

"Okay, we can work with that," Quinn said. "So, whatever is there is hostile and communicates using old Bug comm code, correct? So it's likely a Bug ship of some sort." 

"Nothing else in the Confederation is known to communicate using that code," Yola said. 

"I want to know what's inside that cloud," Quinn said, "but without it telling any of its friends. Do we have anything strong enough to block its transmissions?" 

"Unknown," Yola said. "We haven't detected any other transmissions." 

"But that doesn't mean they haven't sent any," Jolie said. "How the Bugs communicate is unknown." 

"If it's unknown, how did we know what that was?" Quinn asked. 

"There was a sample in our databanks," Yola said. "It doesn't say how it was captured, only that the origin was from a Bug ship." 

"That's unhelpful," Quinn said. "I'm assuming it's data we got from the Galactics. Would knowing where it came from help any?" 

"It won't help us right now," Hancock said. "It might help Fleet." 

"Okay, let Lady Shadow know what you've discovered, assuming you haven't done so already," Quinn said. Hancock looked at her innocently, but Quinn wasn't fooled. She wasn't the suspicious sort but knowing Brit, her minions were ordered to transmit anything related to the Bugs to her as soon as it was discovered. 

"What's your plan?" Jolie asked. 

"We need to know what's in there," Quinn said. "We need to quarantine it and crack it. I'd rather not wait for help but we may not have a choice." 

"We should be able to handle one Bug attack craft," Jolie said. 

"Isn't it more likely to be one of their planet busters?" Quinn asked. "And an escort?" 

"We can still contain them," Jolie said. "There won't be much left if we have to defend ourselves. Can we take them intact? That is the real question." 

"And the plan for doing so?" Quinn asked. "We've never engaged the Bugs in combat." 

"You must have plans," Jolie said. 

"I've got plans for recon probes, yes," Quinn said. "That's a quick in and out and not jumping blindly into a shielded area." 

"Well, let's take that and come up with a plan," Jolie said. "Can't let your recon teams take all of the glory." 

Quinn sighed. She wasn't against the idea but with just a light cruiser and two small teams of her troopers, and only one Shadow, they could easily get in over their heads. And Santana would kill her if she lost the ship and its' crew. 

"Okay," Quinn said. "We're out here because the Bugs attacked a system. No reason to go home without at least taking a shot at them." 

* * *

"So, first we need to encapsulate them," Jolie said. "Assuming they haven't already sent a warning, we don't want them saying anything else." 

"The Bugs always move forward and aren't known to go backwards," Hancock said. "So they are very unlikely to get help from the Bug fleet. They will be expected to deal with any attacks on their own." 

"So, they wouldn't send an SOS but we don't want them sharing any tactical data with any friends," Quinn said. "Has your science team found a way to block any transmissions?" Quinn asked Jolie. 

"It'll take a lot of energy, but they believe they can use a portable shield to encapsulate that area," Jolie said. "The sun in this system is a red dwarf and should provide enough energy to power our converters to make it work." 

"It'll make the sun very unstable," Yola warned. "It could go nova." 

"While we're using it?" Quinn asked. 

"Unlikely," Yola said. "But it'll speed up its decline. Right now they're predicting it'll go nova in a thousand cycles. If we do this, that'll be closer to a hundred cycles." 

"So we'll need to put up warning signs afterward?" Quinn said. 

"Or force it to go nova ourselves, before leaving. That'd be the best way," Hancock said. "Otherwise it's like leaving a potential bomb to go off." 

"Okay, we'll need to know the ramifications of forcing it to go nova," Quinn said. "Fortunately, this is a dead zone." 

"The science team is working on that, as part of the plan," Jolie said, after pausing to relay the request. "Unfortunately, we can't use that as part of our attack. Our equipment wouldn't survive a close encounter with a sun going nova." 

"Or us," Yola said. "It'd certainly be a fantastic view, but deadly up close." 

"We might need that as a last resort anyway," Quinn said. "We need to inform Blue Clan, at some point," she added. "They won't be happy with us, but the feeling is mutual." 

"They've basically deserted this area," Jolie said. "So, no one really owns it." 

"It is a rather large buffer zone between them and us," Quinn said. "But we might end up being stuck with it. Something for others to worry about." 

"Once we encapsulate it, how do we get in there without getting blown up?" Jolie asked. "It's just going to absorb any energy we attack it with." 

"We want anything in there as intact as possible," Quinn said, "but a little banged up won't be bad. As much as I want to test our suits against Bug warriors, that isn't our goal. We want useful intel. Intel that will help us against the Bug fleet, not just this side trip they've taken." 

"We need to take their shield down," Yola said. "It'll absorb any weapons energy, but what if we try to syphon it off instead?" 

"We don't have the tech to vacuum up huge amounts of energy, do we?" Jolie asked. 

"We might know some beings who have that ability," Yola said. 

"Who?" Quinn asked. 

"The Juun," Yola said. "They have several tools that syphon off energy as they are mining. Not quite on the scale we need it but the tech is available." 

"If there are plans, we can build it," Jolie said. "We've got some really skilled artificers on board and, as they like to put it, this ship has all the toys." 

"Will the Juun give us their plans for these energy suckers?" Quinn asked. 

"To get back at the Bugs who just destroyed one of their mining colonies? We might need to give them front row seats but I can't see them saying no to the idea," Hancock said. 

"Contact them," Quinn said. "I'm assuming we'll need some help from Fleet also? Or can the Hotep do this alone?" 

"It'll take several days to get any help from Fleet out here," Jolie said. "We can start with the assumption we're on our own and still ask for help." 

"Okay," Quinn said. "I'll request another cruiser to help us, though I don't think Lady Air will give us another like this." 

"There is no other ship like the Hotep," Jolie said smugly. 

* * *

"Lady Hands, you have a message on the ship's long range comm," the Captain's aide said. "The captain said you can take it in her wardroom." 

"Thanks," Quinn said. She headed towards the bridge to take a look. She'd be glad to be back in their sector with their high speed comm relays. Vid-mail was not as efficient. 

Stepping into the captain's wardroom, Quinn nodded at Jolie. 

"I can give you privacy," Jolie said. 

"No need," Quinn said, sitting down and pulling up the message. 

"Can't say you're not ambitious," Brittany said, in the message she'd sent. "We don't have a spare ship the caliber of the Hotep, as you know, but we've got several that have skilled crew who can work on these energy 'suckers' on their way to you so the Hotep doesn't have to build them all. The model is predicting that you'll break even with help and it's a little less sure if you have to handle this incursion site with just the Hotep. The time it takes them to get to you will save time and gives you more of these energy vampires to get through the shield faster. The additional ships will also help, depending on what is behind that shield." 

Quinn nodded to herself. The plan would certainly work better with more ships and the additional energy suckers. They would just have to hope that the Bugs stayed put long enough. 

Brittany continued, "I've included a slightly modified mission plan. Santana had several suggestions that she believes your Captain Jolie can take advantage of. She just wants her other ships back with as little damage of possible. She wants me to remind you that well trained ships crew don't grow on trees." 

Quinn opened the mission plan, and quickly glanced through it. She'd recognize Santana's touch anywhere. It was obviously something she'd been thinking about for a while but hadn't had an opportunity to try. 

"Looks like we're getting some help," Quinn said, looking up at Jolie. "Lady Air has given us a plan with her unique touch. See what you can do with it." She forwarded the plan to Jolie's comm pad. "It makes several assumptions about resources that you'll have to work out." 

Jolie nodded, diving into the plan. "Yes, this does have Lady Air's touch. I remember seeing something like this at the Academy, one of her training missions. We should be able to do this with what we have and what the Apolis, Braise, and Polly bring with them. They're good ships for something like this. They don't have our speed or armaments but they are very tough little ships." 

"My troopers on Alepsos won't have a part in this until the end," Quinn said. 

"No," Jolie said. "But they are going to be vital once we stomp on them. We aren't normally equipped with boarding parties." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, the 'Bugs' are also known as 'Kraal' and other names.

**Author's Note:**

> Updated on an irregular basis.


End file.
